A Tale of Hearts: Scattered
by LightandDarkKH
Summary: Having lost his closest friend, Sora can't go back to the islands just yet, not until he finds him. Stumbling across a strange castle, he can't shake the feeling that Riku is definitely within its walls. On the other hand, Riku continuously struggles with the darkness inside him, as well as his own frustrated and twisted emotions. Can the two ever truly be the same again? [Soriku]
1. Chapter 1: Sora

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Final fantasy, Square Enix, the Square Enix franchise or any of the characters.**

_Wow, _it's been a long time. I did not expect to be on hiatus for so long, but a lot came up. Well I'm here now and I'm ready to write! There are a few things that are going to be different this time around, but I'll tell you all about that later. I hope you enjoy my story, and I hope it was worth the wait!

Oh and if you haven't read my previous story, then I should warn you that I write A LOT.

For those who are old fans from _A Tale of Hearts_, welcome back! I'm glad to see you again (well you know what I mean). I hope you will continue to support and enjoy my Fanfiction!

* * *

**Chapter 1: Hooded Man**

_Sora:_

**_"Take care of Kairi."_**

Sora's eyes flashed open and he sat up instantly. He looked around, Donald and Goofy lay asleep near him, their breathing was slow and peaceful. All three of them had set up camp for the night, and now the fields were completely absorbed in the peace and tranquility of the dark. But it wasn't exactly pitch black, the moon gave off a soothing but rather eerie glow; one that bounced off each and every blade of grass in the seemingly eternal fields that they had been traveling.

_I can't sleep…_

For a while now Sora had been growing restless, they had been walking for days but there was still no way to find his friend and the king. He started to wonder if he should have listened to Riku when he said "take care of Kairi."

Sora stood up slowly and looked around the never ending plane. He curled his hand into a fist and placed it on his chest. The boy looked down as he felt a throbbing feeling in his heart,

_No… I can't give up. Riku, Kairi, and I… we are always with each other… no matter what. As long—as long as we think of each other then we are together right? As long as we remember each other we'll be ok._

The boy smiled and looked up at the star-lit sky; his eyes gleaming in the light. He felt hope resonate within him once more, "Stupid Riku, how can you tell me to take care of Kairi? She's safe back on the islands; the only one in trouble is you, and this time I'm not going to let you face it alone! I'm going to bring you back, and everything is going to be like it was before. You'll see!" he pledged.

A sinister aura chilled the air around him. He turned around—there was nothing there.

"Along the road ahead lies something that you need." whispered a dark voice.

Sora looked around searching for the direction in which the voice was coming from. Suddenly a figure, cloaked in a black hood, appeared before him.

"However—in order to claim it, you must lose something that is dear to you." said the man.

Sora glared at him, "what are you talking about! Are you saying you know where Riku is?!" he shouted, faintly aware that his comrades were sleeping, not-so-far-away.

"Maybe—but are you willing to part with something important to find him?" the hooded figure asked.

The brunet looked toward the ground, uncertain for a second. But he soon recovered himself, "Riku _is_ someone important to me. Right now, there is nothing more important than finding him!" he stated.

The cloaked figure chuckled darkly, "Then you will find him… but be forewarned, you may just regret that decision." Suddenly a strong gust of wind blew, stinging his eyes and forcing him to close them. When he opened them again the figure was no longer there. But the man's final words seemed to echo around him.

**_"But be forewarned,_**

**_You may just regret that decision…"_**

Sora clenched his fist, _no I won't._

The three friends stood in front of a large, slightly warped castle. The building's structure was hard to comprehend; it was as if it had no actual top or bottom. The only thing definite about it was the entrance—a large, embroidered doorway.

As Sora stood in front of it, he felt a strange tugging sensation. Something told him that this had to be the place. Somewhere in there… was Riku. The brunet walked forward towards the door, his friends following closely.

He pushed against the large heavy gate, and the sound of it rasping against the floor echoed loudly throughout the castle.

When Sora stepped in he noticed that everything within the castle was white. Not a splash of color anywhere.

_What's with this place?_

"Hey, you think it's ok to barge in?" Goofy asked nervously.

"We gotta do it, if we're gonna find the king!" quacked Donald.

"The king! The king's here!?" Goofy looked around expectedly.

Donald crossed his wings and gave him a knowing look, "something just told me he'd be here, ok?"

The dog placed a finger on his chin, "well, now that you mention it, I was kinda thinkin' the same thing!"

Sora's eyes grew wide, "Seriously? Me too! Once I saw this castle, I just knew. Our very best friends—they're here." The boy said smiling.

"Ahyuck! Guess great minds think alike!" Goofy laughed.

Jiminy cricket hopped up on Sora's shoulder, "Wait, hey, hold on! It can't be just a coincidence—" he shouted, frantically jumping up and down.

Donald gave the cricket a skeptical look, "Wait, you don't mean…"

The cricket nodded, "Yep, I had it too, mm-hmm! That exact same feeling." He said.

The brunet placed a finger on his chin, _if we all have the same feeling… then maybe…_

The boy turned away from the entrance. At the end of the room, there was another large door. Something was urging him forward, something about the castle—Riku was definitely here. He knew that if he continued to move forward, he would find his lost friend.

Sora stepped forward towards the door; receiving a protest from Donald.

The boy shot the duck a challenging smirk, "what, are you _scared_? I thought you were a duck, not a chicken!" he mocked; placing his hands on hips.

Clearly this ruffled Donald's feathers "Don't be ridiculous! I'm not scared, come on Goofy, let's go!" he ordered.

The dog followed but he stopped after a few steps "Hey, fellahs, shouldn't we shut the door behind us before we go?" he pointed out.

The brunet kept walking, "Nah, it's not like anyone lives here or anything."

"Sora!" shouted Goofy.

The boy whipped around quickly, at the entrance was the same hooded figure that he had met in the moonlit field. The figure stood quietly as the door behind him started closing slowly, the noise of it slamming shut rang throughout the spacious white room.

Sora was getting tired of this guy; he summoned his Keyblade and stood ready to fight. "That's it who are you!?" he demanded.

The Hooded man did not speak, he only walked forward. Beginning to feel threated, Donald and Goofy got prepared to attack. Donald raised his staff, and started to chant his spells, but… he couldn't quite get them right.

Sora and Goofy glanced at their comrade with a concerned expression. The duck looked at his staff "Why isn't it working?" he asked.

By now the figure was directly in front of the trio, "I should think it's obvious." He said in a dark voice. "The moment you step foot in this castle, you forgot every spell and every ability that you ever knew."

Sora felt his body tense up, he didn't like where this was going.

_So if he were to attack now, we would be defenseless?_

The figure continued to talk, "In this place, to find is to lose, and to lose is to find. That is the way, in Castle Oblivion." He concluded.

"Castle… Oblivion?" Sora repeated.

A dark aura surrounded the figure and he disappeared instantly. Sora's eyes went wide; he rubbed them just to make sure he wasn't seeing things. The man had actually disappeared into thin air!

Sora looked around frantically, expecting an attack.

"Here you will meet people that you have known in the past." The voice called from behind him.

The brunet whipped around quickly; the hooded man had appeared once again. He walked toward the boy, but he stopped— leaving still quite a bit of distance between them.

"And you will meet people that you miss." said the man.

The boy glanced to the side, "I miss…?" realization came to him when he found out who it could be. "Riku! You mean Riku's here!?" he asked desperately.

The figure stood quiet for a few moments, "If what you want… is to find him…" the hooded man dashed forward at an incredible speed, Sora stepped back, but it was too difficult to avoid. But instead of attacking him, the man passed straight through his body, leaving only the scent of roses in his wake. He was dazed for a second, but quickly recovered.

He turned around and slashed at the man, but he vanished—leaving many fluttering petals where he had stood.

The figure appeared once again; near the door on the far end of the room. "What'd you do!?" the brunet questioned.

"I merely sampled your memories, and from them I made this." A card appeared in the man's hand. He held it up for Sora to see, "to reunite with those you hold dear—" he threw the card towards Sora's direction.

The brunet caught it easily; he gave it a close look. The design on it looked familiar, "What's this, a card?" he asked. Not lifting his eyes from the paper.

"It is a promise for the reunion you seek. Hold the card to open the door, and beyond it, a new world." The man said, stepping back and motioning towards the door gracefully. "Precede, Sora… to lose and claim anew, or to claim anew only to lose…" the man's tone was dark and cynical. Before the group could ask him any questions, the same dark aura from before surrounded him, and he disappeared.

Sora stood quietly for a moment, eyeing the card. _This could be a trap… but… what if Riku is really here. _He felt the same tugging sensation in his heart. _If Riku is here, I'm going to find him, no matter what! _He looked up, "Come on, let's go."

The boy walked up to the door, _so do I just hold up the card? _

Sora took the bright blue, crown shaped card in his hand; he eyed it suspiciously but nevertheless held it up to the door. The figure had not lied; the door reacted to the magical card and was engulfed in a dazzling light. A loud "click" echoed through the room, and the door slowly opened to reveal a blinding wall of light.

The boy brought his arm up to shield himself from the glare, and he marched onward.

When the light subsided, he was better able to inspect his surroundings.

His eyes widened and he caught his breath, _wait… this can't be right, we're in Traverse Town!_

He analyzed the world around him; he noticed something rather _odd _about this traverse town. _Wait it looks completely different, it's like a tiny room with lots of doors… Where's Cid's shop? _

"What you see isn't real." said a voice behind him.

Sora whipped around quickly, "What!?" he shouted.

The figure vanished again; he seemed to enjoy playing games with the frustrated boy.

"This world is an illusion that manifested from your memories." The cloaked man explained.

"My… memories?" the boy asked puzzled.

He felt a tickling feeling on his shoulder, which made him jerk a little. "Hey stop that!" he protested with half laughter.

Jiminy popped out from beneath his shirt, "Forget about him now Sora! We lost Donald and Goofy!" the cricket exclaimed, jumping frantically up and down.

The boy looked around, shock lit up his face when he realized that Jiminy was right! Donald and Goofy where nowhere in sight!

"What did you do to them!?" the boy snarled.

The hooded man walked closer to Sora, he had a very calm air to him. He didn't fear the young Keyblade wielder. Now he was only mere feet from the boy.

_Are you mocking me!? Trying to see if I'll attack?_

The man disappeared and reappeared just as quickly, in front of Sora. The brunet was taken completely off guard and couldn't move to avoid any of his attacks. Only the man didn't attack, he simply held Sora's face in his hand "Your friends aren't here to protect you Sora. Are you afraid?" the man whispered cruelly.

The boy glared defiantly up at him, from the distance they were at, he could distinguish the color of the man's eyes, they were a soft shade of blue.

"Where. Are. They." It wasn't so much of a question now; it was more of a demand.

The man chuckled and let go of the child's face, "You aren't cute at all." He vanished, only to appear farther away from the boy. "Don't fret, your friends are fine. It is a law in Castle Oblivion that your friends be kept in cards. You may summon them only in battle. Anywhere else, you're completely alone."

Sora's heart rate quickened, and he gripped his Keyblade strongly; he had to admit that there was a certain… uneasiness that came from being alone, especially at a time like this.

"I don't care! I can take care of myself, if you say I have to walk alone, so be it!" he shouted out.

The hooded man chuckled, "The hero speaks boldly I see. Then walk the avenues of latent memory, and you shall meet someone dear to you." His voice started to sound farther away as darkness started to gather at his feet. Then as soon as he had appeared, he had gone, leaving only the echoes of his last words to prove his presence. _"…and you shall meet someone dear to you." _

Sora placed a hand on his heart. "Someone dear to me… Riku…"

After roaming through the false traverse town for some time, and having to engage in countless fights solo; Sora was starting to become increasingly exhausted.

_It's as if this place never ends… One door leads to one room, and so does the next one, and the next, and the rest of them! How do I get out? What's the point of this!_

He felt someone tap his shoulder and he nearly jumped out of his skin, he let out a blood chilling wail and swung his Keyblade, nearly missing Goofy. The dog had ducked and was covering his head, "It's just us Sora—Ahyuck!"

The brunet blinked and dropped his stance; it was only Donald and Goofy. "Wait how are you guys here? I thought you weren't supposed to appear in these worlds."

"No idea, if you ask me; I think you should be happy!" the duck said arrogantly.

"And why's that?" Sora asked.

Donald pointed to all of his cuts and bruises, "Because you obviously can't do anything without us!"

The brunet looked down at his injuries and gave a small nervous chuckle, "aha— I'm just a little rusty."

"No matter how many of you there are, you shouldn't be messing around here. The Heartless will destroy you." Spoke a familiar voice behind Sora.

He turned around quickly, his face beamed when he saw who the voice belonged to.

"Leon! What are you doing in Castle Oblivion!?" he asked. Not like he was complaining, he really missed his friend, and didn't know when he would see him again; it was a nice surprise to find him now.

But the man didn't seem to share his joy, "Castle Oblivion? What are you talking about? This is Traverse Town, and how do you know my name? Who are you?" he asked.

Sora's eyes widened, "W-what do you mean?"

"I mean, I've never met you before." He said coldly.

Sora suddenly became angry, "Quit playing, Leon! We all fought the Heartless, you know that!" he snapped. If Leon was playing a joke on him, he sure didn't like it.

The man narrowed his eyes at the child, "look, I don't know what you're talking about. I don't even know your names."

The boy's body relaxed in defeat, "…You…don't?" he asked; his voice didn't hide his sadness.

Leon crossed his arms, "…Sorry."

"How could you have forgotten about us?" Sora asked; his voice somber.

"Look, I feel sorry for you, but I'm telling you that you've got the wrong guy. Don't dwell on it Sora." The man froze when he finished his sentence.

"Ha! So you do know us!" the boy exclaimed.

The man held a hand up to his mouth, "wait… why do I know your name?"

"Stop kidding around Leon!" shouted Goofy.

"Yeah, Sora is really upset!" Donald added.

The man glared at the two characters, "Whose kidding around Goofy? You and Donald are the one—" he caught himself again.

He placed a hand on his forehead, "what's going on? Something is wrong with my memory…"

_I don't think he's playing around, he looks really confused… what's wrong with you Leon?_

"Maybe Aerith was onto something after all, huh Leon?" said another familiar voice.

A raven haired girl walked up next to Leon, and he turned to face her. "Remember, she said she sensed some uncanny power, and she asked us to look into it. Well, it doesn't get more uncanny than this. Maybe you should take Sora to see Aerith?"

Sora smiled, "Yuffie, you know my name!"

The girl turned to him and gave him a thumbs up, "yep! And looks like you know mines too!"

Leon gave her a questioning look, "You know him?" he asked.

She grinned, "Nope! Total stranger, but I definitely know his name! Strange, but convenient, now we can skip introductions." she said happily.

The man closed his eyes and let out a sigh, "how is it that you can accept this so easily?"

Yuffie grinned, "Well, I've got to go fill Aerith in! So why don't you train Sora or something? Give him the grand tour!" she exclaimed. Then she bounded off, leaving a very awkward Leon to deal with the trio.

He scratched the back of his head, "well… I guess I have no choice huh? Let's go see what you've got."

* * *

_Leon:_

Leon led the three strange characters to district three; he wanted to see how well the boy was in battle.

As he walked through the alleys he rapidly scoured his memories for even a glimpse of the small brunet, but… nothing.

_This is so strange… I don't know this kid, but somehow I do? Uh, I can't accept this as easily as Yuffie can. Who are you Sora?_

When they finally made it to district three, Leon pulled out his gunblade. He turned to Sora. "Ok, show me what you've got." He ordered.

The boy instantly smiled, "alright, if you say so! But be prepared, I beat you last time too!" The Keyblade appeared in Sora's hand and he positioned himself to fight.

The man raised an eyebrow, "last time?"

The boy chuckled and scratched the back of his head, "Oh right, you don't remember… Well, let's just say you and I didn't meet on the best terms."

The man narrowed his eyes, "_oh really_?"

He placed the gunblade on his shoulder and walked towards the boy slowly, he wasn't planning on going hard on him. He wasn't a difficult opponent, so there was no need for him to be serious.

The boy dashed forward, which in all honesty was to be expected. Sora seemed to be the reckless type.

Leon quickly struck down with his blade, only to have it blocked by Sora.

The boy grinned up at him, and his eyes seemed to shout _"I knew you'd do that!" _

He swiftly retracted his gunblade only to have Sora strike a blow to his left side. Leon jumped back and winced at the pain.

"Well you know how I fight, that's for sure." He said, trying his best to stifle a groan of pain.

Sora smiled, "That's why you shouldn't go easy on me Leon! After all, you taught me everything I know!"

_Everything he knows huh? _

He held his gunblade firmly in front of him.

Then I guess I won't be going easy on you after all."

Leon paced himself, and surprisingly so did Sora. It seemed like he wasn't willing to go for another reckless charge like before.

Leon studied Sora's stance looking for any form of weakness, and sure enough the boy had plenty of faults. He didn't have the steadiest stance, a slight sweep would leave him on the ground in no time, and the grip on his Keyblade was way too tight. Obviously technique was not in this boy's dictionary.

Sora was also trying to find some of Leon's weaknesses, but lost his footing while his attention was focused on the young man. The older boy didn't miss a beat, he stepped forward tripping Sora so that he landed on his back. He pointed his gunblade at his neck and lifted his chin up.

"You're very careless you know that? You have such a sloppy stance it's almost insulting for you to say I was your teacher." He frowned.

Sora opened his mouth to protest, but was silenced by the cold blade that grazed his chin, warning him not to speak.

Leon pulled his blade back and extended out his hand.

"Here, come on I'll show you how."

A small tint of pink flushed over Sora's face, clearly he was embarrassed; he didn't like being treated like a kid.

Sora stood in his original fighting stance, while Leon walked around him in circles, eyeing him closely.

"Can you just get to the point; it's really annoying having you stare at me!" Sora shouted nervously.

Leon stood behind him and placed a hand on his hip and another on his shoulder.

"Keep you back straight."

He slid his foot under Sora and pushed his legs further apart.

"Broaden your stance, that's the reason you were so easy to unbalance."

He looked down at Sora and noticed that he was blushing all the way up to his ears.

Leon's face flushed and he back off, scratching the back of his head.

_His nervousness has got me nervous. Jesus kid, it's not like I'm going to kiss you._

He shook his head and erased the image from his mind.

Looking back at Sora he noticed he was still gripping the Keyblade way too hard. He walked up to him and wrapped his hands around Sora's. He loosened the boy's grip with his fingers.

"There, you aren't choking a chicken. There's no reason to hold it so hard, you're just making your attacks stiff and heavy if you do that." He lectured.

A pout formed on Sora's lips, "I guess I still have a lot to learn huh?" he muttered.

Leon felt the temperature of his face rise; Sora was just… so—childish! He wasn't used to children, well unless Yuffie counted as one.

_You can't make that face and expect me to be completely fine kid! You know I can't take it when you do that._

He froze, he knew Sora. He knew about his goofy expressions, childlike behavior, he also knew about his loyalty for his friends, he knew his bravery and something in his heart throbbed remembering it all.

Sora was no stranger that was for sure. His adventures with him along with everyone else might be fuzzy but the feeling was there.

It kind of filled him with sadness to have forgotten such a good friend.

He smiled at Sora and patted him on the shoulder, "how about we go a few more rounds and then we'll go see everyone."

Sora's eyes shined with happiness, "yes, agreed!"

* * *

_Sora: _

After a few more rounds sparring Leon; Sora, Donald, and Goofy followed him to see the others.

"Hey, you have to admit I beat you a few times!" he grinned.

"Yeah, yeah, you can say what you want but it doesn't make it true." He said sarcastically.

Sora narrowed his eyes at him and stuck his tongue out at the man, knowing very well that he wouldn't be able to see him since he was leading the way.

Feeling contempt with his immature antics he realized that Leon was very similar to Riku in some ways. They were both witty, and good at fighting; both had that arrogant air to themselves. Most of all, they acted cold but where really and truly kind people.

Realizing that, it kind of just made him sad that he hadn't found Riku yet.

_It's ok though… he's somewhere in this castle… Yeah, I just have to keep looking! _

Once they reached the "secret base" as Sora used to call it (though it really wasn't… it was basically an abandoned house.) Leon opened the door and allowed him to come in.

Yuffie and Aerith looked like they were in the middle of a conversation but turned to the doorway when Sora stepped through.

"Aerith!" Sora ran towards her excitedly. Aerith was probably his favorite; he didn't know who she reminded him more of, his mom or Kairi.

He wanted to hug her but stopped himself, he looked up at her and his expression saddened when he saw the happy but bewildered look on her face.

"You don't recognize me either do you?" he mumbled sadly.

"Oh, um no that isn't it Sora! Well, not entirely… it's like… I recognize you, but I don't know you. Or at least I don't remember knowing you." She tried her best to cheer him up.

It didn't really work, having your friends not remember you hits you pretty hard.

Aerith held her hand up to her mouth, "I don't know whether to say "'Nice to meet you.' Or 'I'm happy to see you again.' It's strange, like I don't know you but you belong here."

Yuffie jumped in, "Yeah! It's like we've never met, but I know that we're great friends!" she exclaimed.

"But we HAVE met, we battled heartless together remember? We were a team!" Sora shouted.

Leon studied Sora for a bit. "It feels like your right… but I just can't remember anything."

Sora glared at him, "Ok, then I guess you won't remember what you said to me in Hallow Bastion then! 'We may never meet again…"

"but we'll never forget each other…" Leon finished.

"See you DO remember!" Sora's face looked hopeful.

The room stayed quiet and Yuffie inched closer to Leon and prodded his arm.

"That's right Leon, I remember you said that before too!"

The man looked like he was searching his memory for any trace of that time, but he just sighed. "It has to be true, I know Sora. We know Sora, I just… can't remember anything." He said.

"I think your heart is doing the remembering for us, Sora." Aerith stated.

"My heart?" Sora asked.

"We don't remember you Sora, but your heart is filled with memories of us together. Those memories are resonating with ours and are telling us things we wouldn't otherwise know." She added.

"So his memories are affecting ours?" Leon asked.

"Well, it does seem that his memories hold some strange power." She said turning to him.

Sora thought back to the hooded figure, "Maybe it's just as he said… this town is just an illusion created from my memories."

Aerith turned and walked toward Sora, "Is there someone special to you in this town?" she asked.

"How did you…? Oh wait, my memories are telling you the story aren't they?" he said.

He looked down sadly, "Yeah, I have a really important friend here in this town—well castle Oblivion. I really need to find him."

"Castle? There aren't any castle's here silly!" Yuffie laughed.

"That's not exactly what I mean…" Sora sighed. He didn't really know how to explain the situation to them.

"You barely understand what is going on yourself, huh?" Aerith said sympathetically.

"Yeah, I just want to look around town and see if he's here." Sora said; glad that Aerith understood.

"Then go ahead, you can ask Cid too, maybe he might know something. Just be careful." Leon finished.

Sora smiled, "Right, thanks!"

After searching for what seemed like hours—though it probably wasn't, but Sora had a short attention span—they found Cid gazing at the three large bells in the town's plaza.

"Hey old man!" he shouted.

Cid turned around and his face looked angry at that remark, but it instantly turned into joy once he saw him.

"Well if it isn't the little pipsqueak Sora!"

He froze for a second, "wait… I don't know you, what I meant was that you look like a Sora. That spikey hair and baggy pants… I don't know the name fits you well."

Sora rolled his eyes, "It's alright Cid… my name is Sora."

A smirk formed on the man's face, "huh, so you know my name huh? I'm getting pretty famous then." He said arrogantly.

Sora just sighed; he didn't feel like explaining again so he just let the old man have his little fantasy.

"Yeah, well I'm looking for a friend; you have any idea where he could be?" he asked.

Cid fiddled with the large toothpick in his mouth before answering, "Honestly, if you can find anything but heartless here that would be a wonderful surprise. You're welcomed to look, but I doubt you'll find anything but those critters, you can't go anywhere without running into them!"

Sora's shoulders slumped, defeated.

_Now what?_

"What you really have to watch out for are the big ones! Woo are those things nasty! Apparently there's this really big one that appears when the bell rings, you don't want to be around when that happens!" Cid exclaimed.

_The bell?_

Sora gazed up to the top of the plaza tower, _oh yeah, I remember, there's a bell up there!_

"Well, see you kid. Good luck on finding that special person of yours." He winked teasingly.

Sora blushed, _W-what are you talking about old man! Me and Riku are just friends! _

Cid walked off chuckling to himself and Sora remained twiddling his fingers, face flushed.

_Well… I guess I've been using "special friend" and "important person" a bit too often… b-but Riku __**is**__ a special friend and he __**is**__ important to me! It doesn't have to have any special meaning…_

"Hey Sora!" a loud quack brought him back to his senses.

He turned to see Donald with a miffed expression on his face.

"What?" he asked.

"Let's leave!" he yelled.

"Yeah Sora, you don't know when that heartless might show up." Goofy said while looking around nervously.

Sora grinned, "What, are you _scared?_" he asked challengingly.

Donald burst, "Of course not!"

The brunet rolled his eyes, "Then what's the big deal—"

A loud Gong rang throughout the plaza, and it continued to ring, echoing off the walls and filling the entire area with its ominous chime.

"Uh, oh…" Sora looked back at his companions to see that they had disappeared.

He remembered what the hooded figure had told him; he wouldn't have help in fights…

Just like how he remembered it, a large clump of armor fell from the sky and started to rebuild itself.

Once completed, it sought out Sora, who was kind of frozen from the shock.

_Calm down; think, just fight like how Leon taught you. Fight like how you fought it before. You've had had harder battles._

He brought out his Keyblade and prepared his stance. He wasn't going to lose, even if he didn't have help.

The armor came thrashing toward him, each step sending small tremors through ground.

The armors biggest and most reachable weak-spot were his legs, Sora remembered that much at least.

He dodged and swerved past the armor's reckless attacks until he found an opening. He lounged forward and struck at the armors feet. They didn't disappear so quickly though, the armor trashed about again and kicked Sora into the fountain in the plaza.

He was soaked, bruised, and battered up but for the most part, ok.

_I really could use some help…_

Something in him made him check his pockets, maybe it was just intuition but inside where his friends locked inside cards. There were only two, one for Donald and one for Goofy. He had to make it last.

He held the card up and called his friend out.

"Donald! I need your help!" he shouted.

In a flash of light Donald burst out of the card and it shattered.

The duck gave him a content grin, feeling good about himself knowing that Sora needed his help.

He raised his staff up and cast the cure spell on Sora, then turned toward the enemy and shot fire magic. He hit his mark and the armor fell apart momentarily.

Then Donald disappeared.

_I guess they have a set time limit. Thanks Donald._

Knowing that, he jumped out of the fountain and dashed toward the dismembered metal body.

He destroyed what he could with his Keyblade. The legs completely disappeared now. Then the body re-made itself and started aggressively lashing its arms at him.

Sora dodged and swayed, and examined his enemy for any more weaknesses.

The torso was the main part, if he could destroy that, the whole thing would disappear, so that's what he would do.

He took out his last card, "Goofy, cover for me!"

Goofy popped out and the brunet didn't waste a second.

He dashed toward the armored heartless and bashed at his torso relentlessly. It was unable to land a hit on Sora, because Goofy protected him with his shield.

That security only lasted so long, so he disappeared just like Donald.

Sora jumped back, he was content with the damage he did though. The armored heartless lumbered toward him and he took aim with his Keyblade.

A small reddish flame formed at the tip and it soon turned into a large fiery sphere.

As the armored heartless got ever closer, Sora grinned.

"Fire!" he shot the fire ball straight into the center of the armor and its body started to shake violently and shine brightly.

A large glittering heart came out of the rumbling metal.

What remained of the armor started to fade away, and Sora wiped his forehead.

"Well, that wasn't so hard!" he said, though clearly exhausted.

He heard footsteps running towards him and he braced himself for more heartless, but it was just Leon and the others.

"Oh, it's just you guys." He relaxed.

"Are you ok? We heard the bells ring, did you fight off the heartless?" Leon looked worried.

Now that he thought about it, in reality maybe Leon was more like his mom than Aerith was.

"Yeah I'm fine." Sora said with a grin.

Leon let out a sigh and you could see the tension release from his body. "It's good you weren't hurt, we were all really worried."

Yuffie snorted out a laugh, "What are you talking about 'we', you and Aerith were the only ones that were really worried and you were about seventy percent more worried than she was!"

He bonked Yuffie on the head, "Children should be seen, not heard." He said in an annoyed tone.

Yuffie whined and rubbed the top of her head, but she wasn't discouraged. She turned to Sora, "Hey did you find your friend!" she asked excitedly.

Sora shook his head with a sad smile, "Not yet, but maybe soon. He has to be somewhere in this castle."

"Too think this whole town is inside a castle! Isn't that crazy!" Cid exclaimed.

Leon crossed his arms, "It may sound hard to believe but we'll just have to trust Sora. He seems to have a firmer grasp on reality than we do at the moment."

The brunet scratched the back of his head nervously, "Well don't give me too much credit. I barely know what's going on myself…"

Leon gave a slight chuckle, "Don't worry, no matter what come s across your path I know you can take it. I may not remember you Sora, but I know you're in my heart."

The small brunet gave him a sad smile, "Leon…"

Yuffie smiled at him as well, "Take care Sora."

Cid had a lost look on his face but he managed to say farewell too.

The group walked away after saying goodbye to their friend. Sora prepared to head out as well, a strange door had appeared and if anything it probably led back to castle oblivion.

He turned to leave but a soft voice called his name. He turned to see Aerith walking toward him.

"What's wrong Aerith?" he asked.

"… I don't have all the answers but I have to tell you one thing. Your memories created this town right?" she asked.

"Yeah?"

"If that's true then this town is just a figment of your mind and so are we…"

Sora's eyes widened, he refused to believe that. "That's not true! You're standing right in front of me! The town is here too!" he shouted.

"But I'm not really me. I don't remember the things I should and I sense things I shouldn't." She paused giving him a sympathetic look. "Sora beware your memories… In the journey to come you'll be faced with more illusions. Sometimes the shadows of your memory will try to deceive you, lead you astray."

Sora crossed his arms, "So what do you mean by that?"

She smiled and shrugged her shoulders, "I'm sorry, I'm just another illusion, the truth is out of my reach."

Sora looked at her sadly, "Don't say stuff like that! It's depressing…"

She walked toward him and grabbed is hand, placing it on his heart. "Stay strong Sora, don't let the illusions lead you astray." She said calmly.

He blinked, "okay…" he was still very confused by everything, but he knew now that he had to be careful.

_My heart won't be lead astray, I know who I need to find, and that's Riku. _

**End of Chapter One**

* * *

Ha, well one thing for sure hasn't changed, I still write way too much, but I hope you enjoyed my story anyway!

Well, now it's confession time... I'm not done with this story, so I won't be able to update every week like I did before. A lot of stuff has come up so now I'm going to have to update when I can, but I guess it isn't so bad right? My stories are lengthy anyway so you have a lot to read to keep you busy!

But I hope you know that I'm really relying on you guys to keep my lazy butt working- please send me some motivational PM's or review my story, it really helps me out and stops me from slacking off. Oh, and if you see any errors, please notify me so that I can fix it right away!

Thank you I love you all, and I hope that you will continue to enjoy my story(series?)!


	2. Chapter 1: Riku

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, Square Enix, the Square Enix Franchise, or any of its characters. (I also don't own Disney).** [I haven't been writing that one, woops.]

Well, surprise! Here's a little treat, for every chapter I make I will submit two because I need to write both Sora and Riku's story. So, here's Riku's part! (Still chapter one though).

Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 1: Realm of Light and Dark**

_Riku:_

_Riku was perched on the trunk of the paopu tree as always, staring off into the ocean. _

_The atmosphere was so peaceful and serene, but strangely enough, something about that tranquility made him uneasy._

_"Where is everyone?" Sora, Kairi… They weren't there. It was odd, and it left him feeling empty and abandoned._

_Inevitably making the decision to look for them, he jumped off the trunk. Once he did, Sora appeared in front of him. _

_"Oh, there you are Sora. Where you off playing with Kairi again? Both of you have been avoiding me lately." His own words stung him, he didn't want to be forgotten and shrugged off by Sora._

_The brunet looked at him blankly, as if he was trying to remember exactly who he was. _

_Riku snapped his fingers in front of the boy, "Hey Sora? You ok?" _

_The brunet blinked and instantly his expression was wrapped in fear, he slapped the boy's hand out of his face._

_"Get away from me!" he shouted._

_Sora tried to run off but Riku grabbed him by the shoulders, "Hey wait Sora, what happened? It's just me!" _

_The boy shoved him away, "Don't touch me you monster!" he snarled. _

_Riku's eyes went wide, "monster…?" _

_Hearing that from Sora cut him deep. He stepped back, "What are you talking about Sora?" a nervous laugh escaped him, surely he was kidding, right? But if this was a game he didn't want to play it. _

_Suddenly a swirling dark aura started to gather at his feet. The sinister energy engulfed him and altered his outer appearance; the Riku that stood in front of his friend was now cloaked in a dark cloth that tightly wrapped around his skin, and a shredded white garment belted around his waist. _

_Sora stared at Riku eyes wide, his small frame trembled as he was paralyzed with fear._

_Then, without his consent Riku's legs started to advance toward Sora. _

_Riku panicked, "wait, what's going on!?" he protested. _

_Sora didn't move, as if he was frozen to the spot, but his expression was filled with pure terror. _

_"Stop, no! Leave him alone!" Riku shouted. Though no sound actually came from his mouth, all he could do was watch and cry out silent, frantic pleas. _

_He stood directly in front of Sora and slowly wrapped his hands around his friend's neck; Riku looked on in pure agony. _

_"Why, can't I stop myself? I don't want this!" he bawled._

_Sora clung to his hands, desperately trying to free himself. _

_Riku's voice came out shaky and pleading, "No… I don't want to hurt him, please!" he cried. _

The boy awoke with a start, his breathing was shaky and rampant and beads of sweat trickled down his neck onto his chest. His heart thumped loudly in his chest.

He held a hand to his head.

_A… dream?_

His eyes widened when he noticed his surroundings, he stood up and noticed there was nothing really to stand up on.

"Where am I…?"

The area that surrounded him was nothing but a gray fog; it stretched on for what seemed eternity. There were no walls, ground, or sky.

**"Stay asleep…" **a dark voice echoed.

The boy looked around warily, "who's there!?" he shouted.

**"You should remain asleep. Here, between light and dark." **

"Between… what?" he asked.

Suddenly a thought came to his head; there was someone important with him just a moment ago! Where was he now?

"The king! Where's the king!? Together we closed the door to darkness… after that—"

**"You came drifting here by yourself." **The voice interrupted. **"You did not have the strength to overcome the darkness. Or… maybe you were close to it." **

_I didn't have the strength…? So… I've been locked away…_

"Hmph, as if I'm some kind of demon." Riku growled.

The dark voice chuckled, **"Turn from the light, shut your eyes. Here blanketed by the darkness sleep is safety, sleep is eternal. But…" **

A bright light flashed in front of him, he flinched in response; when he glanced back there was a bright blue crown shaped card in its place. The mysterious card slowly encircled him, and he watched it with bewilderment.

"What's this?" He asked.

**"It is a door to the truth. Take it and you sleep ends as you take the first step towards the truth. But know this, the truth will bring pain. Will you still go?"**

The card stopped circling the boy, and now floated in front of him.

**"There is no returning to the security of sleep." **the voice warned.

Riku eyed the card carefully, _if I take this card… who knows what will happen? It could be a trap but…_

Images of his recent nightmare flashed through his mind again and he flinched.

_If I don't leave nothing will change, and that's a lot worse than any trap that this guy has waiting for me. _

He reached out to the card and grabbed it.

"This seemed like a boring place to take a nap anyway." He said smirking.

The voice chuckled, "**That was ****_very _****well said Riku." **

The card's light shined brightly once more, and Riku turned away from the intense glare. When he opened his eyes again he was in a pristine white room that was void of anything but a large golden hued door.

He analyzed the room, but there was really nothing there but him, and there was no way back, behind him there was only a wall. Not that he would want to go back.

He held the card in his hand and studied it; a picture of Hollow Bastion was on it.

"A key to the truth, huh…" he repeated to himself.

_Trust me; it can't possibly bring me any more pain than I've already brought to myself. _

He walked toward the door, "I guess I have to pass using this card huh?"

He held the card up and it shined, a loud click sounded from behind the door and it opened. Riku stepped through without a second thought.

The world he stepped into surprised him, he studied his surroundings; it was exactly how he had remembered it.

"This is Hollow Bastion… Why am I here?"

**"What you see is not real. It's the world of your memory." **Spoke the voice again.

Riku looked around, the voice was very familiar and he didn't like the sound of it. He couldn't figure out who it belonged to though.

**"The things you remember from your time in Maleficent's castle became a card, and that card made this world. You've seen everything here before haven't you?" **

"Yeah… Not like I want to remember this place…" his tone was empty, everything about this place brought back memories he would much rather forget.

He looked up at the sky, "So what now!? Am I going to learn something? Maybe, meet someone?" he shouted.

He didn't want to show it, but he wanted to see _someone's _ felt really alone, though he would barely admit it to himself.

**"You would meet the people in your memories… ordinarily." **The voice said.

Riku bit back a growl, "what does that mean?" he shouted.

The voice didn't reply, he could only hear a faint chuckle echo around him.

"Hey! I'm asking you a question!" he snarled.

He didn't like being toyed with, and that is exactly what he felt was happening.

He bit his lip, "Tch, fine. But it had better be you I run across next, voice." He said in a hostile tone.

He made his way easily through the castle; he knew it like the back of his hand, though that realization sickened him. Every crack and crevice, every door, staircase, and window were recognizable. Every spot brought back memories of how he betrayed Sora, and it pained him.

_I just want to leave this place already. What am I here for, I'm not meeting anyone, then…why am I wasting my time walking down memory lane?_

Somehow he ended up in front of an especially familiar doorway.

It was the door to his room; he pushed it open and stepped through. Everything was exactly as he remembered it.

It was a dark, tiny space with nothing but a bed and a desk in it. Bookcases lined the walls, they were filled with a vast quantity of literary genres.

None of which, Riku had actually read. Though he did remember skimming through one that reminded him of home.

He walked up to the bookcase and blew some dust off the shelves. He scanned the rows for the book from his memory.

Once he found it he slid it out of its crevice. He wiped the dust bunnies off with his hand and he opened it up.

The book was titled _set sail_, and spoke of two boys who went on the adventure of a lifetime, they traveled the world in search of riches and excitement. Riku had never voiced it out loud, but deep down he loved fiction, and he loved tales of adventure and travel.

If you were to go in his room back home you would find the walls plastered with all kinds of different types of treasure maps. Even when he was little, his favorite game to play with Sora was pirate.

Back when Riku had stayed with Maleficent, the thing that fed his hope, but unknowingly his darkness was that book. He wanted to travel with Sora the same way the two boys had traveled in the book.

But at some point in the novel, the other boy fell in love. He abandoned the protagonist and he was left alone. That was when Riku closed the book, he feared reading on and having the same fate befall him.

He didn't want to be abandoned.

_Funny, because I feared being alone I sought out loneliness myself. _

He turned to the end of the book, he wasn't about to read the whole thing, but he at least wanted to know what happened.

_Blue's heart pounded rapidly in his chest as his friend's sword pointed threateningly at his neck. There was no escape; behind him the cliff sheared off into a 50 meter drop._

_"Why… why did you give everything up, for her!?" he shouted. _

_Alex's face was twisted in misery, "You should've grown up Blue! You should've let go… but you selfishly held onto that fantasy inside your head. Why am I not allowed to find happiness?" _

_"You always said you were happy as long as we could set sail together!" he snarled. "What happened to that!?" _

_Alex's expression was pained, "I was happy… but eventually you grow out of it. I wanted to settle down, raise a family. I couldn't go on your little adventure anymore."_

_"Well, now what are you going to do with her gone? Hah, I might allow you to travel with me again if you beg!" he laughed. _

_Alex's expression of sorrow was replaced with scorn. "You are not the brother I had. You are not my friend, and I will __**never **__beg you for any of your forgiveness. You're a monster, a demon, and you should be slain like one!" _

_The man pulled his sword back and thrust it through his former friend's chest. Blue looked down at the blade that pierced his body as his shirt began to stain red. _

_He looked back up at his friend and smiled a sadly, "You're right, and if anyone was to slay me… I'm glad it was you… my friend." _

_He reached toward him to give him one final embrace, but everything around him started to fade. _

**_I am a monster, and there is nothing I can do to apologize for how I've wronged you, but… if we are to meet on the other side, I would like to start this over, and atone for my sins… dear brother. _**

A sharp pain tugged at Riku's heart and his hands began to tremble, he didn't want this to happen. The last thing he would ever want would be for Sora to think was that he was a monster, but… the book was so similar.

What if Sora already thought he was a monster, what if he never wanted to see his face again? He didn't know what he would do if that happened.

Sora was his closest, no—his only friend. At least the only one that meant so much to him, the only person that he truly cherished and found special, he was his most important person and if he were to despise him… Riku would shatter.

Riku dropped the book on the ground and clutched his head in his hands; his breathing was coming out short and quick.

He kneeled on the floor next to the bookcase and tried to compose himself. Shutting his eyes tight and gritting his teeth he did everything in his power to calm down.

_No, it won't come true! That won't happen, you saw Sora! When you closed the door, he wasn't angry, his eyes weren't hateful… they were… sad. He doesn't hate you. _

His eyes opened slowly and his breathing came out slower, "yeah… it's not going to come true."

He stood up shakily and took a deep breath and let it out. He was fine for now, but he much rather leave quickly, before his mind wandered further.

**"Hahaha, wasn't that a wonderful book, it was precious to you back when you stayed here wasn't it? Isn't it nice being in your old bedroom? Think of all the memories…" **The voice popped up again.

Rage started to stir inside Riku, "Sorry, but these memories I could do without. Maleficent gave me this room." He sneered.

**"So she did, and you lived here, tempted by the darkness she offered. You cast away your home, your friends everything… but at least they gave you a nice room." **The voice mocked.

"How about you stop talking!" Riku snarled.

_As if I need your help to remember what I did wrong! _

Fury burned inside the boy but he wasn't going to allow the voice to torment him further, he swiftly left the room.

Making his way through the castle, he fought with countless heartless, which seemed to be the only things inhabiting the castle. At some point he ended up in the ball room, where he had fought with Sora in the past... right before he lost his heart.

"Why is this place filled with nothing but heartless…?" he complained.

_Where are the people from my memories, I know I was with Sora and Kairi in Hollow Bastion for a short while… So why aren't they here… _

He looked up toward the ceiling, "Hey voice! I know you're watching so how about you answer something for me? Where are the people from my memories?" he asked.

**"Do you want to see them?" **it asked.

"Of course I do!" he shouted impatiently.

**"But you cast them aside."**

Riku clenched his fist; he was getting really annoyed with this voice.

"What?" he asked angrily, as if daring the disembodied voice to judge him further, he wasn't going to take it.

**"You dreamt of the outside world, and you stepped through the door to darkness. Behind you, you left family, friends, home—everything—all in pursuit of darkness." **

"But I cast that aside too!" he argued.

**"And what do you have to show for it? First your home, then the dark. Your heart only knows how to cast away. It's empty—like that room. Like your memories, that's why you don't meet anyone. Your heart is hollow—except for the residual darkness."**

He was wrong, he couldn't be right. His heart wasn't hollow; if it was hollow it wouldn't feel any pain! He wanted to escape the island for Sora's sake; it was always for Sora's sake! Or… was that just something he told himself…?

He shook his head, "You're wrong, I rejected the darkness!"

**The voice laughed coldly, "ha ha ha, did you really now?"**

Riku clenched his teeth and ran out of the ball room. It was strange, he couldn't really fight back. He had always considered himself to be witty and quick, but now… maybe deep down— he knew it all to be true?

_It's not true… I'm not just some dark heart! I can't be… Sora always saw the good in me… but maybe that was just Sora… _

He shook his head to get rid of the thoughts.

He was running blindly now, he didn't care where he ended up but he just didn't want to be surrounded by that echoing voice anymore.

He found his way to a dark, specious hall; at the end of the corridor stood someone he would have rather not seen. He cautiously walked toward the cloaked woman.

"Maleficent, I thought you were dead!" he shouted.

She flashed him a sinister smile, "You haven't been paying attention have you. I'm nothing but a figment of your memory."

"Out of everyone that I could've met, I had to meet you." He scowled.

She placed a hand on her cheek. "But of course, after all your heart is steeped in darkness. You can only meet those who exist in that darkness."

"No…!" he yelled.

_I'm nothing like you. _

"Be grateful you have someone to keep you company, because your heart is empty. Were it not for the darkness it contains you would be completely alone." She said calmly.

"That's sounding pretty good right now!" he spat.

An amused gleam flashed in her eye. "Come now, you once turned to me to sate your hunger for darkness. Face it, you want me here. Who but I can grant the darkness you long for?"

Riku looked down, "there was a time I did want you around… I surrendered my heart to the dark. But never again, you and the dark have NOTHING to offer." He looked up at her defiantly.

The boy started to walk towards the witch, he stood next to her but he looked straight ahead, as if recollecting his memories.

"All I did was lose myself… empty myself! I'm finished with all that." He stated firmly.

A cold grin formed on the witch's face as she eyed the boy curiously.

"If I'm stuck seeing people like you… people of the dark… I'll just have to take you out one by one!" he shouted, turning to her.

The witch chuckled, "Then you mustn't forget to destroy yourself last. For like me, you are one of the dark."

Riku glared at her, "That's fine with me. I turned to the darkness because my heart was weak. I hate that weakness, it's like I'm my own enemy… and seeing people like you who embrace the darkness just makes it worse!" he yelled.

"Enough talk Maleficent!" he growled.

"So you hate the darkness enough to fight it. Oh, the agony you must feel! Then let me end your misery my dear boy—end it forever!"

Pitch-black haze and green embers gushed out from the witch's body and engulfed the room. Riku held his ground despite the immense pressure from the power flowing out of her.

When the fog had cleared, an immense dragon, with gleaming scales that were darker than night stood in the place Maleficent once was.

Riku brought out his weapon, "I think you look better that way. If you ask me, you should stay like that all the time." He said sarcastically.

The ferocious lizard roared and slammed its foot on the ground, causing tremors to ripple through the floor.

Despite knowing very well the strength that the dark fairy possessed, he wasn't afraid. He knew better than anyone else, that engulfing yourself in darkness will only lead to your own demise.

He dashed forward, barely evading the balls of green flames that the dragon shot at him. He attacked the creature's face relentlessly until it reared up on its hind legs and let out a frustrated cry.

When it slammed back down, it caused a large quake to shake the room.

The violent shaking made it difficult for him to keep balance; he tried to stay up-right but lost his footing, and collapsed to the floor.

When he glanced up he noticed the dragon lifting its front leg as to trample him while he lay on the floor.

"Damn it!" he spat.

He quickly got to his feet and jumped out of the way— barely escaping the attack that would have made him into a flapjack.

_It's almost impossible to get near her. This old hag is actually pretty strong._

The dragon whipped its tail side to side like a cat eyeing its prey. Then, before Riku could react, it lashed at him with it, bashing his body against a pillar.

He could barely let out a cry, all the wind was knocked out of him in one go. He slid to the floor dazed and vision blurring, "no… I have… to win." He coughed.

He stood up on quivering legs; he winced and almost fell once more but managed to hold his own. There wasn't much of a fight left in him anymore, there had to be a way to end this quickly. If this battle lasted any longer, he would surely die.

Though in her dragon form, Maleficent's eyes seemed to mock him.

Riku glared at her, "If you think you've beaten me your wrong!" he shouted.

Glancing at the tail that had so easily pummeled him, he got an idea.

He dashed as quickly as he could to the lizard's tail; before it could react, he ran up the spine of the dragon until he reached the base of its neck.

The creature panicked and thrashed about, hoping to shake the boy. Riku held on, it was no use—there was no way he was letting go, even if it killed him.

The thrashing got slower and weaker after a few minutes; it seemed to take a toll on her.

One hand still holding onto the dragon's neck he summoned his Keyblade and thrust it into the nape of its neck.

Interestingly enough, there was no blood. Green flames enveloped him and Maleficent.

He closed his eyes and braced himself for the agony of being burned alive, but there was no pain. The fire had not harmed him. The last of it started to fade until it along with the dragon had vanished and nothing but him remained in the empty chamber.

"I told you, I wouldn't lose." He muttered to himself.

A door appeared on the other side of the chamber.

"That must be the way out. Good riddance, this place is just one big nightmare..."

Though he would never voice it out loud, when he had first arrived to this castle it had really been something from his wildest dreams. It was everything he had wished for and more.

It provided him with the freedom he had sought… or at least that's what he had previously thought.

In truth, the castle was dark and empty. It held nothing for him but empty promises of a life he would never live.

A life like that of the story, one where he could have wondrous and exciting adventures with his best friend like he had always wished, but the castle failed to provide the most important piece of the puzzle.

_Sora…_

Stepping through the door, he was once again in the pristine white room.

**"Why do you shun the darkness?" **echoed the voice once again.

"Hmph, come on— I know you heard me, every word I said to Maleficent." He said stubbornly, though his tone betrayed his confident words.

Truth be told, he felt that he was slowly weakening. After all, having something constantly repeated to you… you start believing it.

**"Darkness is your weapon. It is time you learned you must accept it." **

"What do you mean?" he sneered.

**"Stop resisting, accept the darkness, you have no choice…"**

Riku jumped back as a dark aura started to swirl in front of him. Out of it came a familiar but unwelcomed individual.

Riku glared at the figure in front of him, "I knew it was you Ansem." He sneered.

The man looked amused, "oh did you really?"

"All you've been talking about is darkness… I can only assume—" he clutched his hand into a fist. "That you want to pull me back in."

It would have been strange to find that the voice was anyone but Ansem; the only thing that it did was patronize him on his past, on his decisions and his judgment. Not that any of it was wrong; deep down, he believed every word that the voice spoke, but he didn't _want_ to believe it. Instead he wanted to believe in what Sora had once said about him, he had once _defended _Riku against such verbal attacks.

Sora relentlessly swore that Riku was a good person, he attested to his good nature and kind heart. It made him wonder, what did Sora think of him now? Now that he knew everything that he had once thought, was a lie…

He was nothing but a possessive, manipulative fiend. Maybe he did belong in darkness after all… but, his pride wasn't about to allow him to fall just yet.

"You just want to play puppet master again." He remarked.

The man let out a chuckle. "Clever boy, I knew you'd be the one to most appropriately serve me—now, surrender to me again!" he reached out his hand to Riku, the same way he had done before.

Back then he was desperate for power, desperate to show Sora the same agonizing loneliness and betrayal that he had suffered, but not this time. He wasn't going to fall again.

"You're crazy—not a chance!" he snarled, whisking his arm through the air and summoning his Keyblade.

_You're not going to use me a second time._

He charged towards Ansem, teeth bared. This wasn't like him, this wasn't his strategy. He was more of the "observe and attack" type of fighter, but he carelessly allowed his emotions to intervene.

Ansem effortlessly countered his attack and Riku landed on the ground with a heavy thud, he scrambled to get to his feet. He didn't want to lose, not again—he didn't want to be in his clutches anymore!

"Did you really think you could do me harm? A weakling like you couldn't even defeat Sora— and you had darkness on your side." The man declared smugly.

"Well excuse me… for being weak." He glared.

He knew very well of his weakness, and to compare him to Sora was as if comparing night and day. He knew he was nothing like him, and although at some point he thought that the boy had needed his protection, he was a fool to think so. Now he knew, that Sora held more power than anyone could imagine. Well, it wasn't that much of a surprise really, Riku had always thought of him as special.

Ansem walked toward him as Riku struggled to stand, the impact from the dark force field was harsher than he initially thought.

"You are weak, you need darkness. Surrender. Bow to darkness, bow to me." Ansem asserted.

_Is this really how it's going to end…? Am I really so pathetic!? _

Riku growled, refusing to give up so easily. "That's not going to happen!"

The man peered into his eyes as if he knew that his resolve was slowly weakening. "Only the darkness can offer you, all the strength that you will need!"

"You're wrong!" intervened a small but familiar voice.

A small flickering but bright light floated around the room. Riku recognized the voice instantly.

"That voice… your majesty?" he exclaimed.

He followed the light as it slowly drifted toward him. "That's right! Remember Riku, You're not alone." advised the voice.

Never before had he been so happy to see such a small glimmer of light, but it meant something to him. It meant there was hope. The light drew closer to him and entered his heart, instantly he felt his anxiety and uncertainty vanish. Never again would he ever question the power of light, after all… look how relieved and secure it made him feel.

"Now listen closely, the light will never give up on you! You'll always find it, even in the deepest darkness!"

The voice belonged to the king, the only person in the world, besides Sora who had ever given him a chance. He was the one person who believed in him… even when everyone else didn't.

"I got it." He replied firmly.

He stood up defiantly, and glared at Ansem. "I won't lose to darkness… not today."

Ansem chuckled, "so you truly think that feeble little light can save you, from the darkness that _I _command?"

Riku raised his Keyblade, he was ready this time. But strangely enough Ansem didn't make a move; he snickered to himself and studied the boy in front of him.

"I know all your flaws Riku; I've been in your heart for too long. I know about that boy that you are so desperate to protect— so desperate in fact that you chose darkness as a means of doing so. I wonder what he thinks of you now, surely he couldn't have forgiven you for so shamelessly betraying him."

His heart lurched, and he felt his resolve weaken slightly. The fact was that he didn't know. He couldn't be sure, and no matter how much he wanted to believe that it wasn't so, it was impossible.

_If Sora hates me… then…_

Ansem took advantage of the weakened state that his heart was in, and he shot a dark aura into Riku.

He felt his body chill and his legs buckle; he gripped his chest and let out a strangled groan.

"What'd you do!?" he shouted.

The man chuckled, "I simply tempered with the darkness that yet remains in your heart." He responded.

"You still think that I'd rely on darkness!?"

"To use it or not is up to you, but you will. You need its power, and once you succumb to it, you will belong again to darkness!"

"So if I don't… if I don't use it, and I'm able to face these challenges on my own— then I win." He declared confidently.

The man laughed, "Running towards the light won't save you from the darkness, nothing can save you from the darkness." As he spoke those words, his body began to fade and disappear, leaving behind nothing but a blue crown shaped card.

Riku walked towards it and picked it up.

"Trust me, I'm not running."

**End of Chapter One**

* * *

I made a story within a story- why? Because I can! I am God! (well at least the God f this story).

I love writing for forever alone Riku, I have a thing for depressing characters. Well, now you know that every chapter comes with two! Please review or PM, it would mean the world to me! See you next time, I hope to update soon!

Love you all!


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